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Raisie Bay

holiday

Travelling holidays in the UK

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We are not big fans of travelling but love the UK for holidays and were so sad that we couldn’t go away this year thanks to the COVID virus. Our holiday in Dorset was booked just after the lock down ended and we could have still gone, but it felt a little too scary so soon. Plus a lot of the facilities were still not open. We re-arranged our holiday for next year, so fingers crossed we’ll be able to go then.

This got me thinking on how we have a different kind of holiday. We avoid hotels because with three children we have to book two rooms. Plus it feels to impersonal sharing a building with others. We generally go for caravan holidays and admittedly we spend a lot of time in the caravan, especially if it comes with a lovely view.

What I would really love is a motorhome so we could travel wherever we wished. Buying one is out of our budget though, and we would have nowhere to store it while not on holiday so we’d definitely consider Freedhome Motorhome Hire. But where would we go. Here are a few places I’d like to visit.

Places I’d go Travelling to in a Motor Home

England

Dorset is one of my favourite places to visit. You have the stunning Jurassic coastline and so many lovely beaches. If you are lucky you can find somewhere really quiet. You can see some of the places we visited in Dorset a few years ago, including West Bay where they filmed most of Broadchurch. (TV Drama.)

jurassic coastline in Dorset, taken in Charmouth. Image shows cloudy sky, cliffs and the sea

Cornwall. A little further south you have gorgeous Cornwall, which has many places to stay in a motor home. You can go surfing at the wonderful Newquay, visit the Eden Project, or travel to the most south westernly point of the UK, Lands End.

Norfolk. Go East and visit a beatuful area with an incredible coastline and the fabulous Norfolk Broads. There are several places to stay in a motor home and plenty to see and do in Norfolk. Don’t forget to smell the Norfolk lavender.

The New Forest is in Hampshire and is a haven of wildlife, pleace and tranquility. It’s easy accessible but you’ll have to move out of the forest to stay overnight in nearby places like Brockenhurst.

Wales

I love Wales, but my husband was not so convinced until we took a trip through the amazing Elan Valley last year (seems like a lifetime ago.) It was so beautiful and peaceful. The roads can get pretty high but they are wide and safe enough for a motor home.

Pembrokeshire is just one part of Wales that is really worth a visit, it is has everything you need from beaches, nature and outdoor adventures. The coastline is stunning, and you can also visit the castle town of Tenby or family favourite holiday destination of Newport.

Snowdonia is another place in Wales I’d love to visit. Whether you feel like a little mountain climbing or just a beautiful view. Plus there are some amazing camp sites

Scotland

Head North to the beauty of Scotland and enjoy the open roads and fantastic motorhome routes. There are some fabulous places to visit like Loch Ness, where you may even see a monster, or maybe Inverness Castle is more your style. Or head to John O Groats right at the top of the UK. You many even be able to see the Northern lights from here.

The route from Glencoe to Fort William is one of Scotland’s essential road trips and a great places to go when you are touring Scotland in a motorhome.

Spend some time parked by Glencoe’s awe-inspiring mountains if you really want to feel some peace.

Where Would You Go on a Travelling Holiday?

I’ve touched on just a few places in the UK here, you could even go to the Peak District or the Lake district. When you have your home on wheels then the country is yours to explore. Let me know where you would visit, I’d love to know. (My cruise may be exchanged for a motor home holiday instead!)

Scotland

This is a collaborative post

Covid Diaries Day 76 The Future

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I’ve changed the title from Isolation Diaries to Covid diaries. As of this moment we are still in Isolation and haven’t been out, but the rules are relaxing and we are now one of the few. Things will be changing for us soon too. I don’t know if the kids will be going back to school before Summer, but it’s still a wait and see situation.

It seems for us that everything is a wait and see situation. Thanks Covid!

Lock down Broken

So, the Prime Minister’s advisor broke lock down but apparently he didn’t. But the people say he did, the PM says he didn’t. The people say, it’s there in black and white, the PM says he didn’t. The people say it’s not fair, the police need to do something. The Police say, he would have been warned if we caught him but he’s not being prosecuted. What a shambles. The people are angry so the PM comes up with a new plan. He refuses to talk about his advisor any more and lets everybody have their freedom back.

So, from Monday you are allowed out to meet other people. The rules are clear (haha) as always. You can meet with up to six people from another family. So six teenagers from different families are welcome to gather on the street corner. But, if you have four kids in your family, and two parents then you cannot meet up with the grandparents together. One parent can take three kids and meet up with both grandparents, or one parent can take four kids and meet up with one grandparent. It all makes sense doesn’t it? Doesn’t it? Clear as mud.

You can meet these other people outside in the fresh air. Don’t go to their house, unless you go in the garden. But then you can’t use their toilet, unless you really need to go, then it’s ok so long as you wash your hands. You can have a BBQ together and pass food around. So long as you wash your hands. But it’s best if you just meet in the park because you MUST still stay 2 metres apart…stretch those arms while passing that hot dog or burger! And don’t hug or kiss, no, not even the grandkids. Do you know why? Why you have to follow these rules? BECAUSE COVID IS STILL OUT THERE! We haven’t beaten this virus, it hasn’t gone anywhere. It’s just not spread so much because we have been staying home. (Well, some of us.)

If it all goes wrong then it’s our fault for not following the clear and precise rules and many more will die…you know…just in case the death toll of (currently) 37,837 is not enough.

Contact Tracing and Covid

Covid isn’t going anywhere and contact tracing is the best way of controlling outbreaks. So if you are sick you call 119 or go to the website. Get a test, get the results, and as soon as possible let them know who you’ve been in contact with so that they can tell them to isolate just in case. It’s brilliant. But in my opinion (disclaimer, it’s just my opinion) it’s not going to work.

Here are my reasons for contact tracing not working:

  • It’s a simple system but way too complicated
  • The phone lines are already having problems on day one
  • It relies on the British public to inform of illness, get tested then tell of all their contacts.
  • It relies on people listening to the warnings that they have been in contact with someone and then isolating
  • It relies on common sense
  • It relies on things like computers and phones and people working properly
  • It relies on people doing as they are told
  • It relies on people honestly believing that it’s for their own good and not some elaborate government plan to control the population.
  • It relies on trust and honesty

I’m not even going to mention the app. because what’s the point. No-one is going to download and use it.

Holiday

Oh how I long for the beach, to feel the sand beneath my toes and the cold water of the sea wash over my feet and dissolve my woes.

Only joking! I haven’t been able to walk on the beach properly for over four years anyway, and the last two times I did manage to get my feet in the cold water I went into spasm.

I do love the seaside though and watching the kids play. We have a holiday booked in August in Weymouth. A caravan holiday with a beach nearby, and a big entertainment complex and pool. We love our holidays and this year was important to me because Star is getting older. When my older kids were a year older than her they started going away with friends or their Dad. I don’t think Star will be ready by next year, but then I never imagined my older kids would be either. I was looking forward to this years holiday.

The campsite is making adjustments. The caravans are great for keeping away from other people. The beach is fairly quiet (There is a much busier one nearby if you don’t mind more people) I am guessing they will limit their guests and close their clubs. (the club houses are generally packed to the hilt and we avoid them mostly anyway because they are not good for wheelchairs.) The kids love the amusement arcade, but again, it’s always rammed with people. And the pool will be a no go area too. The shop will be open with social distancing. We can still go but it won’t be the same. Honestly, I think we could be happy spending the whole week in the caravan with a view of the sea and the sea air. We could miss out on the arcades and pool, and eating out (although we love eating out on holiday.) We could still get take outs and have a BBQ next to the caravan. If the beach is quiet the kids can still go and play.

I’m faced with a difficult decision, but I have a month to make it. I’ve been told it will be July 29th week that I will be contacted and asked if I still want to go. As much as I want to, I’m scared.

What we’ve been up to during our Covid lock down

It’s been 10 days since my last update so I’ll fill you in with our week and a half of excitement.

We had another BBQ. The weather has been so warm and sunny and eating out in the garden is so much nicer than sweating away in the kitchen.

Graham cut the grass again. My Willow tree is growing and so is my lavender. I just need my roses to grow now, we have buds. Graham has moved the post so I can see them from the window.

The new garden furniture has not yet arrived…watch the weather change when it does!

I’ve almost finished crocheting the back of my new cardigan and I’ve read three books (or rather listened to them) you can read my reviews on my other blog if you wish.

my crochet done during covid lock down
My Crochet cardigan

I’ve been busy working, it’s strange but while I was trying to home school the kids I was inundated with work, but it dried up at half term. Thankfully, I still had plenty to get on with.

We played a new game, Sproutword and you can see my review here. Go take a look it’s great fun.

Sproutword
The game Sproutword

I can see you yawning now. I am too. So I’ll catch up with you soon. In the meantime here’s my Covid link up thingy if you want to add a post or two.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

My Word of the Week #33 2019 – Holiday

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Hello and welcome to the home of Word of the Week, a nice and simple weekly linky, with everyone welcome to pop by and share. The idea of the linky is to reflect back on your past week and share it with us. It’s great if you can sum it up in a word or phrase, hence giving us your Word of the Week. My word this week is holiday and you can read more about that below.

I’m not totally strict on using just a word or phrase but please try to stick to the theme of summing up your week.

There are not too many rules with this linky, just remember to read at least another couple of posts in the link up after adding your link. I will read and comment on all posts and tweet them out for you. I also have a Pinterest board devoted to Word of the Week and I will add posts to Mix Please add the badge below to your post so that others may find us and join in. If you comment or tweet then please use the hashtag #WotW

Word of the Week is open from 6am on Friday Morning to 12 noon on Monday. Plenty of time to join in!

If you are unfamiliar with the Word of the Week linky then please feel free to ask any questions. New linkers are always welcome, we love to hear what you have been up to in the past week.

MY WORD OF THE WEEK.

Holiday

a big sun in a blue sky
Holiday

I’m away this week, hopefully enjoying some sunshine in Cornwall. I’ll write up all about it when I get home, but in the meantime, do link up your posts and I’ll read and share them when I can.

Word of the Week badge

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Summer Time, and the Livin’ is Easy

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One of these Mornings, You’re Gonna Rise up Singing

Not this morning though! The first official day of the school summer holidays and I was going to be spending it in hospital having my treatment. The kid’s were going to visit Grandma who lives near the hospital. And I was going to get the ‘juice’ that would keep me going for the next four weeks. But….

I woke up with a tummy bug instead and had to cancel my appointment.

No worries though, I’ll be there on Thursday instead. And then we can begin our Summer holidays properly.

And You’ll Spread Your Wings and Rise Up to the Sky

Hey, for someone who can’t walk, flying would be a great option. But as I’ve admitted before, I’m no SuperWoman.

But we will be spreading our wings this summer and we have some lovely activities planned.

On Saturday, Boo celebrates her 12th birthday with a party tea and some friends around. We will be making her a cake, which she’ll probably design herself.

last year's birthday cake
Boo’s Birthday Cake from last year which she made herself

Next week we have trips planned to the Wildlife Conservation Centre and then an afternoon meeting some exotic animals. This is all thanks to a local SEND Social group, so we’ll be meeting some new friends too.

Can I ask you a favour, it’ll only take a minute? Our SEND social group does such a lot for Special Educational Needs and Disability kids in our area and they are up for some funding from Love Brum. If you could please give them a vote on this page we would be so grateful.

SEND Socials Birmingham

Fish are Jumping, and the Cotton is High

Okay, maybe I’m pushing it a bit with the lyrics now. But we will be going on holiday just after The Little Man’s birthday. (we’ve not quite decided what to do on his birthday just yet.)

We are off to Cornwall, right down to the very tip were the sea will be blue and hopefully the sky will be too. We are also meeting up with some friends for a day on the beach, and I’m hiring a beach wheelchair so I can go right up to the sea.

I am hoping for a nice peaceful holiday. There will be plenty for the kids to do as we are staying on a holiday camp with lots of entertainment. But really, I just hope we can relax for most of the time. The kids are great at keeping themselves entertained and it can be hard work getting them to leave the caravan. But this year I don’t care, so long as I can relax with a sea view then I’ll be happy.

Hush Little Baby, Don’t You Cry

So, although we have a few activities planned. And a total of three birthday’s to get through. (It’ll be Star’s 14th Birthday when we get back from Cornwall…I mananged to squeeze the holiday in between the birthday’s this year.) I am hoping that the main theme this summer will be peace and quiet.

On the inbetween days we have a schedule of less screen time and more time reading books and playing board games. We have a new Switch as a shared birthday present so I guess the laptops will be ditched in favour of this. Also, The Little Man is getting some great garden gifts for his birthday (I can’t really say what here just in case he gets nosey.) And Star has requested a very interesting board game for her birthday. (Again, hush!) Plus, I’ve been asked to review a board game! I don’t think the screen will get much of a look in!

Oh, and we are also having a go at trying some new tastes throughout the holiday. We haven’t started yet, but I plan to as soon as I feel better. And I’ve challenged the kids to learn something new. Boo has already started by learning how to crochet. (Note how she’s still listening to her tablet. I can’t complain, I’ve normally got Audible playing while I crochet.

Boo learning how to crochet this summer

The Flea Retreat 2019

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Last year I spent a fabulous weekend in Somerset for the Flea Retreat 2018. I had such a wonderful time I couldn’t wait to sign up for this years Retreat in Wales. We stayed at the lovely Tynrhyd Retreat which was situated near Devil’s Bridge, Ceredigion.

photograph of 23 bloggers, some sitting some standing in TyhnRyd retreat, Wales
Bloggers United

What is the Flea Retreat?

Well, it’s the gathering of a small group of bloggers for a weekend of fun and learning. It starts on Friday afternoon and finishes after lunch on Sunday and all food and refreshments are provided. (Although if you like to drink you may wish to bring your own alcohol)

There are a wide range of bloggers that attend, some old, some new but you are guaranteed to go away with a few more blogger friends than before. It’s also so lovely to meet bloggers that you may normally only interact with online.

Activities range from canoeing, gorge walking, bushcraft, photography groups, photography walks, writing groups and video workshops. You pick which you want to do and you can do as much or as little as you like.

How My Weekend Went

I arrived on Sunday to find that, although the venue was beautiful, I knew access in wheelchair was going to be difficult. After trying to navigate my chair on some scary ramps I was moved to another bedroom which involved less steps. I won’t lie, I did find the whole accessibility thing a little upsetting. Everyone was so kind and helpful though and I bet a few gained some extra muscles carrying my wheelchair up and down steps for me.

My room was lovely though and I had my own en-suite bathroom. It wasn’t a disabled toilet or bathroom, but I could manage. I had easy access to a kitchen where I could make tea and coffee and a dining room and lounge where I could interact with other bloggers and take part in workshops. The larger dining room involved one step which I eventually decided to walk down and abandon my chair. On the last day I even managed to navigate across the dining room into the other kitchen, involving a short walk with my sticks. (I paid for that later!)

What I got up to

Well, I avoided all the water activities which is probably wise seeing as I can’t swim. But there were plenty of other bloggers left behind that I was able to interact with and I had a lovely evening .

Saturday

After breakfast I was lucky enough to have my nails done by the lovely Jaime using her fabulous Bio Sculpture products.

a hand with pink nail varnish
excuse my wrinkly hands, but this is my favourite kind of pink.

Then I had a session on Fairy Tale writing with the lovely Kirstie Pelling. She’s generally a travel writer but also writes poetry at Poet in Motion. I was inspired to continue writing my poetry now. I have a small collection over on Poetry in Stitches.

After lunch I did more writing in a workshop with the Rachael Lucas. It was really interesting, and I’ve just received on of her new books from Amazon.

While I’m talking books, I also grabbed myself a copy of Play Groups and Prosecco from the lovely Jo Middleton who blogs at Slummy Single Mummy

Then, I did a photography workshop with Derek Lomas Who is incredibly creative and can make the most simple product look totally amazing. We had some fun with some Bio Sculpture Gemini nail polish.

a pile of nail varnish dripping onto a clear white surface, against a white background.
Photo courtesy Derek Lomas
Derek at work

Dinner on Saturday was more formal and we also had a birthday girl in our midst, the lovely Victoria from Verily Victoria Vocalises. I hope she had a lovely day.

Sunday

Sunday I was a little frustrated as I’d planned some sessions which caused me problems with accessibility. This left me stuck in my own corner of the venue with a video session. Arrgh, I cringe at being on film, but the session turned out to be really good. I learnt a lot from Tony, and watching my video back was not as cringy as I was expecting it to be. We were all able to give constructive opinions on each other’s videos and Tony helped us with pointers on how we could improve. It actually gave me some inspiration and confidence in making some more video content.

Tony from Chefs Training also ran some food based video workshops as he trains Social Media chefs on camera skills.

Then we had another session with Rachael Lucas which helped inspire us and build our confidence. Rachael is a joy to listen to and I learnt so much from her.

Then it was time for our group photo before heading in for our last lunch together.

My husband decided to take the scenic route home through the Elan Valley, which was absolutely stunning although a little too high for my liking at certain points. I’ve since learnt it’s where we get our water from here in Birmingham.

Elan Valley, big green hills with a river flowing through it.
Elan Valley

What Makes a Flea Retreat Different?

If you are a blogger then you’ve probably heard of tons of different blogger events, whether they are for one day or a whole weekend. You go along, learn a lot, meet up with PR agencies and brands that may want to work with you, chat with tons of other bloggers, make new friends etc.

The Flea retreat is much more relaxed. There is a lot to do, but you do not feel obliged to do everything and sitting around chatting, or even going to your room for a nap, is perfectly fine. Because it’s just a small amount of bloggers it’s easy to fit in and make new friends or catch up with old friends. Everyone is friendly and the staff working there are super helpful and lots of fun. Because the venue is out of the way, you get to see some beautiful views and photo opportunities. You may also get the opportunity to do something new or different, like canoeing or gorge walking. Both events so far have involved a hot tub. The one this year looked super amazing and really wished I’d been able to jump in too.

The next Retreat I believe is going to be a winter one, so I’m thinking it’s going to be a little different. It’s well worth grabbing a place though.

The retreat wouldn’t be the same without it’s wonderful team of organisers and helpers. I have to end with a big thank you and a shout out to the team.

Sally – https://www.whosthemummy.co.uk/ 
Jen – https://www.muminthemadhouse.com/
Afra- https://www.madmumof7.com/
Sarah – https://tobygoesbananas.co.uk/
Jess – https://jessicainyourear.com/

N.B. I do not in any way hold Flea Enterprises responsible for my accessibility problems. The venue had claimed to have the necessary ramps and facilities but were greatly lacking. Flea Enterprises have given them feedback on the issues I faced. These days, it’s really easy to provide decent ramps and aids for disabled visitors and hopefully they will be more aware in the future.

EDIT: Exciting News!!

I’ve just heard that the Tynrhyd Retreat has now sorted out the correct ramps for future visitors. This makes me very happy 🙂

Mix It Up Linky